Social channels that sound like you and keep people coming back.

Social media management is the ongoing work of running a brand's social channels. It covers strategy, content planning, content creation, copywriting, scheduling and publishing, community management, monitoring conversations and trends, and reporting on results. The aim is to build an engaged audience that knows and trusts your brand, supports sales and customer loyalty, and gives you a direct line to your customers. It usually focuses on organic social, although the best results come when it is planned alongside paid social and other channels.

A social media management agency takes care of your social channels on your behalf, or supports your in-house team. At Vertical that includes social strategy, content calendars, photography, video, design, captions, scheduling, community management, social listening and monthly reporting. Because we also run paid social, influencer marketing, creative and email, we can connect your organic channels with the rest of your marketing, so content, audiences and insight move between them rather than sitting in separate teams with separate goals and reporting.

It depends on where your customers spend time and what kind of content suits your brand. Instagram works for most consumer brands, TikTok is strong for reaching younger audiences and showing personality, Pinterest suits considered purchases such as home, fashion and food, LinkedIn is essential for business-to-business brands and YouTube suits longer, searchable content. It is usually better to do a few platforms well than to spread effort thinly across all of them, so we help you prioritise based on your audience and goals.

There is no single right answer, because it depends on the platform, your audience and the resources available. Consistency matters more than volume. A steady, sustainable rhythm of good content will outperform bursts of activity followed by silence. Platforms such as TikTok and Instagram stories reward more frequent posting, while LinkedIn and Pinterest can work with a lighter schedule. We agree a posting rhythm in your strategy, then adjust it based on what the results show over time and what your team can sustain.

Yes. Our creative team produces photography, short-form video, carousels, graphics and copy designed for each platform. We plan content in advance around themes, launches and seasonal moments, and we can also work with your existing assets, user-generated content and content from creators you partner with. Having content creation and channel management in one team means we can move quickly, respond to trends and make sure everything that appears on your channels is consistent with your brand, accurate and of a high standard.

Community management is the work of engaging with the people who interact with your brand on social media. It includes replying to comments and direct messages, joining relevant conversations, thanking people who share your content and handling questions or complaints with care. Good community management builds loyalty and trust, gives customers a reason to keep engaging and provides valuable feedback. We respond in your brand voice and agree clear processes for passing customer service issues to your team so nothing falls through the gaps.

We agree measures that match your goals. These usually include reach, engagement, saves and shares, follower growth, website traffic from social and, where possible, sales and sign-ups attributed to social. We also look at the quality of conversations and audience sentiment. Follower numbers alone are rarely the best measure, so we focus on whether social is building an engaged audience and supporting the business. Reports are regular, clear and always include what we have learned and what we will change next.

They work best together. Organic content shows what resonates with your audience before you spend money promoting it, and strong organic posts often make effective ads. Paid social, in turn, reaches new people who may then follow and engage with your organic channels. Insight from paid campaigns, such as which messages and formats perform, also shapes the organic content we plan. Because Vertical runs both, we plan them together so they support each other rather than working in isolation with separate goals.

Yes. Some clients ask us to run their channels entirely, while others have in-house social managers and want support with strategy, content production, community management at busy times or reporting. We are flexible about how we work and set up clear responsibilities, approval processes and shared calendars from the start. The aim is to add capacity and expertise where you need it, while your team stays close to the brand and its community. We fit around your ways of working rather than asking you to change them.

We agree a response process with you in advance, covering who approves replies, which issues need escalating and how quickly to respond. Most negative comments are best handled calmly, helpfully and in public where appropriate, with the conversation moved to private messages if personal details are involved. For more serious situations we alert your team immediately, pause scheduled content if needed and help prepare a considered response. Preparation means problems are dealt with quickly, carefully and in a way that protects your reputation.

We use AI agents to track performance across platforms, monitor comments and messages, spot trends and conversations worth joining, and draft captions, replies and content ideas. That helps us respond faster and see patterns that would be easy to miss. Every post, caption and reply is reviewed by our team before it is published or sent, because social is where your brand speaks most directly to customers. AI speeds up the work, while people keep the voice authentic and the judgement sound.